But God…those are the two words penned this morning on the handout containing the lyrics to the music for the Easter service. Digging a pen out of the bottom of my purse, trying to get the ink to flow before I forgot the words that Eugene shared from Ephesians 2:4, I hastily scribbled But God…The entire phrase reads, “But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much” (NLT). Had I actually carried my Bible and notebook into the tent this morning, I would have jotted down numerous inspiring nuggets from the message, however, by at least documenting those two words, I knew I had a reminder to locate the recording later.
Sharing previously how Respectfully Mystified I am at the way God chooses to “speak” to me through the words of others, I should not have been so astonished that everything in my lap was dumped into the floor as I rushed to grab the handout out of the trash. And NOT because I had failed to make a note about the But God phrase, that had occurred before it was tossed. Instead, it happened because as I was reading a chapter in He Speaks in the Silence, Diane Comer uses the exact same phrase that had touched my spirit only a few hours before as the Donnell’s led the congregation in Death Was Arrested. The lyrics: “My mourning grew quiet, my feet rose to dance/When death was arrested and my life began.” Comer’s thoughts: “My ears heard only raucous noise, but my spirit heard everything He said. No longer mourning, my soul danced with God.” I believe coincidences do happen, but in this particular situation, when I’ve been experiencing a season of grief and desire to move out of mourning…I’m sorry, there’s only one explanation…But God!
Perhaps I am poorly communicating all that transpired within a few hours’ time with words from song lyrics, a pastor’s message, and an author’s heartfelt struggles, because all I can propose to express this intimate experience, especially for someone who is not very touchy-feely, are the words But God! And to paint an accurate picture for you, the duplication of these words transpired just after highlighting Comer’s thoughts on flourishing at life just a few paragraphs before because it was those words that resonated so deeply in my soul that I wanted to share them with anyone who may be experiencing a Tough Season of life.
Comparing and contrasting her definition versus God’s definition of the word blessing, Comer shares, in my opinion, what it means to truly flourish at life: “A blessing, I believed, was all sugar and spice and everything nice… so I learned to count my blessings. To give God credit for the good, nice, loving goings-on in my life. My definition of blessing looked like a perfect life where everyone is happy and healthy and has plenty of everything… My definition fit very well with my neat and tidy life. The problem was, my definition did not fit so nicely with real life. Or the Scriptures.”
Comer continues, “The word translated as blessing in the New Testament is derived from the Greek word, makarismos, which means ‘to be indwelt by God through the Holy Spirit and, therefore, because of His indwelling to be fully satisfied in spite of the afflictions of life.” In other words, to be a Contented Soul. “To be blessed actually means to be fully satisfied. To [flourish] on the inside even if life is falling apart on the outside. To be filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit within that we are able to endure and taste the sweetness of His love even in the midst of bitter reality. Even when it hurts, even when we do not understand. According to Scripture, this kind of blessing is unknown apart from God. No one can conjure it up or fake it for long. It is something God gives whenever we choose to fully entrust ourselves to Him.”
If your Spidey senses aren’t tingling, that’s okay, mine didn’t either. No goosebumps, no lightning strikes, no aha moment, and yet…there was an assurance…there was a knowing…there is only one explanation for why three separate sources in a matter of a few hours spoke the same message to me…But God!
References:
Brandt, E. (2024, March 31). Easter Sunrise Service. Retrieved from https://fellowshipjackson.com/media/8thgjdn/easter-2024
Comer, D. (2015). He speaks in the silence: Finding intimacy with God by learning to listen. Zondervan.
North Point Worship. (2015). Death was arrested. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFiFEjElKMw
Flourishing @ Life 
Just in case you might need more convincing that God is real and working in my life right now. I just read one of the last entries in Fenelon’s The seeking heart…the last paragraph’s first two words…But God!
LikeLike
Dr Julie Powell,
I thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog post. As a person of faith, I found your post to be very encouraging. Reading about your experience with God, and the things you took away from the experience, made me ponder and reminisce on my own faith, and it urged me not to lose sight of my true calling. It is true that God works in mysterious ways, and, as you noted, He even works during the times when we are hastily going about our day or struggling to fully grasp the message that He is trying to show us. As humans, we fall short of God’s glory every single day, and often, we miss the opportunities that God gives us, and we fail to see His guiding hand in our lives. Which is why this post is so encouraging to me. For me, the title, “But God,” is a much-needed reminder that I alone am nothing. Without God, I am a miserable, unhappy person without a purpose, but with God I have a purpose and a calling, and only when I follow God’s calling for my life will I find true happiness and success. Which is why I was especially moved by your illustration that a good life, a flourishing life, is not measured by a neat and tidy life, but by a real life that God has His blessings upon. When I read that line, I was immediately moved by it, and I believe that I will take that concept with me for the rest of my life because I have peace knowing that I am following God’s calling for my life. To many, my life may not be considered flourishing, but God says otherwise, and He is the one who defines me.
– Eden Bradshaw
LikeLike
Dr Julie Powell,
It was a great use of my time to read over this and ponder over. All the time we think we know what we are doing and believe we have everything figured out. Truth is we can’t even walk without the hand of God. Everything we have in this life is because of him. It’s all his anyways, he is just letting us borrow it for a while. Many times, I try to handle different problems by myself thinking I don’t need to pray or ask God for his help. That is why 99% of the time I always fail or have no success at what I’m doing. If I prayed like I should and be a light to those around me, maybe I wouldn’t have so many hardships in life. BUT GOD, can do all things. He said he would never leave us, nor forsake us. That nothing can separate us from his love. Yet sometimes I am, and I wonder why. Because I separate myself, not him. I may choose to leave him at the door, but that doesn’t mean he chooses to leave me. My faith in him is above all others. My faith and strength in God is the very center of my heart and is exactly what defines my flourishing life before I reach those golden gates one of these days.
-Clayton Lawson
LikeLike